In what could be the biggest banking fraud in India, state-owned Punjab National Bank has said it has detected a US $1.77 billion scam and billionaire jeweller Nirav Modi is at the centre of it. Photograph:( WION Web Team )
India's second-largest state-run lender, Punjab National Bank (PNB), has detected fraudulent transactions worth Rs 280 crore in a case that could affect more banks and raise fresh questions about lending procedures at Indian banks mired in soured debt. The entire scam is believed to total up to about Rs 11,400 crore.
This could be the biggest banking fraud in India as its quantum is bigger than an estimated 9,000 crore scam at erstwhile Satyam computers.
In 2015, Bank of Baroda - another public sector bank - had brought to light a scam in which two Delhi-based businessmen cheated it of Rs 6,000 crore.
At the centre of the PNB scam is Nirav Modi, a billionaire jeweller. Here is a brief profile of the man: